Be Careful What You Wish For
by snoopygubs
Summary: Clark wanted nothing more than to go back to the way things were before he revealed his secret. But he's not prepared for what a few simple words will do to him and he realizes that sometimes, you have to be careful what you wish for.
1. Careful What You Wish For

Be Careful What You Wish For

He had debated even going. And, now that he was standing here, he couldn't seem to remember having actually made the decision to show up in the first place.

His eyes were held to her slightly shivering form, watching her hands fiddle idly with the cell phone in front of her on the table. She was expecting him. Or, at the very least, hear from him if he wasn't going to show.

Clark realized it was only one of a thousand calls he should've made to her.

But he couldn't do it. He could catch a car in mid-air. He could withstand hundreds of bullets being fired at him from point blank range. He could absorb the maniacal attack of a monster hurling him across the barn.

But a phone call…

Lying to her and keeping her at arm's length because he couldn't watch another person he cared about wander into the proverbial line of fire would take more strength than he had at the moment.

She had understood. She had let him open up to her about who he really was and she had accepted him. In fact, she'd even looked a bit proud. Smiling softly, her sparkling eyes drifted through his memory. She had listened to his story and it hadn't changed how she felt about him. And then when things had gone so terribly wrong, and he'd decided to leave instead of stay and fight like she'd wanted, she'd understood then, too. She'd looked past all of the walls he'd begun to build up all over again at the thought of having to hide himself within his own life and she'd said she understood. Why he had to go back instead of moving forward…why he wouldn't tell her…

Sharing his secret with her really had made everything seem alright for a while. Seeing the acceptance in her eyes, the smile of determination that had lit her face at the thought of all the good he'd do in the world if she could only do his story justice had brought him a sense of calm that he hadn't felt in a very, very long time.

One he wasn't likely to feel any time soon, either. He couldn't tell her this time around. The feds that had stormed his house made that perfectly clear. They'd tagged Lois as an accessory to the crimes they were hell-bent on believing he had committed, and had even gone so far as to track her down at the Planet with every intention of using force if necessary to get her to talk.

Telling her now would be worse than letting her wander into the line of fire. He'd be tossing her into it willingly, all because of that smile, that pride in her eyes that made him feel as indestructible as his powers did.

She shifted again in her chair, her head inclining slightly toward the street and then snapping back to the marble of the table almost immediately. His hand clenched around his phone, but the strength to press the speed-dial still failed him. She deserved more. She deserved…

The breath escaped his lips and mingled with the steam from the vents in the pavement below. She deserved an uncomplicated life, one in which he didn't hurt her in one way or another. She deserved the truth, and someone who wouldn't make her doubt just how special she really was. She deserved to be with her friend whom she felt she knew and be comforted in the fact that she actually did.

He couldn't give her any of those things. All he would wind up giving her was the hope that he'd never disappoint her right before he brought her world crashing down.

It was better this way. She'd understood his need to go back to before he'd revealed his secret, and he could only hope she understood why he couldn't meet her. She'd said she would…

Taking action before he could change his mind, his fingers flew over the keys and pressed send just as his instincts were telling his feet to move forward. But he remained rooted to the spot as he saw her attention drawn by her beeping phone and held his breath as her hand hovered over it.

Time had always been somewhat irrelevant to him…being as how he could move quicker than it took words to travel from one person's mouth to another's ears…but he felt every moment of it now. She didn't seem in any rush to check her waiting message and the knot in his stomach intensified. Somehow, without even being able to see her face, he knew that he'd found a way to hurt her regardless of his desire to protect her.

When her hand finally snatched up the phone, something snapped inside him and he almost sped past her table with every intention of grabbing the offending piece of technology and tossing it in the nearest trash can. But before he could give the thought any kind of credence, he saw her fingers moving over the keys. He could do little more than watch her as she crafted what he assumed would be some flippant Lois reply regarding her surprise that the glorified copy boy was working late. Or a short, stand-offish assurance that she was tired anyway and would catch him tomorrow…

But when his phone beeped twice and his eyes greedily flew over the words she'd sent across the small distance, his chest constricted and all of the sounds he was always trying to find a way to drown out became muted and vacuous. A dull ringing began somewhere in the deepest corners of his mind and wouldn't let up as his eyes dragged, like magnets, back to the straightness of her back and the slight drop of her head.

_Chasing a lead, couldn't make it anyway._

And just like that, he could feel everything shift. Despite every effort to set things right, he'd wound up hurting her. But this time, he knew she didn't understand.

Because he didn't.

And he knew without a doubt that Lois had, within seconds, reconstructed every wall they'd torn down over the course of their friendship the past four years. Things wouldn't be the same between them from this point on because she'd lost her faith in him.

The muscles in his jaw tensed as the realization washed over him in a sickening wave. He'd wanted to keep her safe by keeping his distance, by protecting her from the influence of simply knowing him…

And in the process, Lois would close herself off to him, denying him the privilege of being her friend and sometime confidante. She wouldn't need him to protect her because from now on, she'd be protecting herself.

From him.

He knew it wasn't possible, but the night got darker right before his eyes and he found it hard to breathe.

He'd gotten exactly what he wished for…and never, despite an entire lifetime of feeling like an outsider, had he felt so alone.


	2. Overrated

_Author's note: Thank you to all of you who reviewed. This is my first Lois/Clark fic and I appreciated all the feedback and the interest in this continuing. I'm not sure how long this is going to be just yet, but it will most certainly develop over another five or six chapters at least. I'm not big on rushing out a story so I apologize if there seems to be a wait between chapters. But I'm a stickler for grammar and stories going the way I'd envisioned them…but the characters sometimes have their own plans! Makes for slow moving sometimes…_

_Hope you enjoy._

Chapter 2: Overrated

Talking was overrated.

So what if she wasn't used to silences? She'd get over it. Especially if talking meant that she'd actually have to think of something to say. At least, something that wasn't broken or angry…or awkward and fake.

Because the truth of it was, as much as silences freaked her out, figuring out this nightmare situation she'd landed herself in freaked her out even more. And she had no idea where the line even was with Clark anymore, let alone how to walk it or which side they were actually on.

And, apparently, neither did Clark.

His face was a mask of control that made her want to hurl a stapler at his head. Usually, she could read the farmboy-turned-reporter like an open book. One with lots and lots of pictures. In fact, it was one of the things she'd loved teasing him about the most.

But there would be no teasing today. Besides the fact that his features were infuriatingly set as he focused intently on his computer screen, there was the small issue of where teasing now fell in the vortex that now existed in the space previously occupied by what passed as their relationship.

Pursing her lips tightly together, Lois' fingers flew over her keyboard. If anything, the crippling desire to hold onto some semblance of normalcy forced her limited ability to process words at the moment on her work. She'd have the proposal Tess Mercer had requested done within minutes.

Good.

The sooner she met with the boss, the sooner she'd have her story green-lit and the sooner she could renew the focus she'd lost on the one thing in her life that wouldn't let her down.

The sounds of the bullpen infiltrated her concentration but instead of distracting her, it fed her blood and made her fingers fly over the keys even more rapidly. A small smile tugged at her mouth as the last few lines came together like pieces of a puzzle.

A wave of satisfaction washed over her as she moved the mouse to save the proposal to her flash drive.

"Pulitzer Prize?"

Clark's voice separated from the other sounds buzzing through her brain, drawing her attention to him for the first time since they'd said good morning. "What?"

Clark's smile was quick, but it had the same effect it always had. She mentally cursed herself for the slip in vigilance and squared her shoulders against the desire to throw the tape dispenser in rapid succession after the stapler.

"Your article," he continued, gesturing vaguely at her computer. "You've been working on it all morning, nonstop. It's got to be something good."

She blinked at him. "Uh, yeah. Yeah," she repeated, the power of her own voice returning almost instinctively. "You bet your life it's good. Above the fold if Tess gives it the go-ahead."

"I'm sure she will." Lois' eyebrows raised slightly at the confidence in his statement. That, and the second small smile he aimed at her.

"She better," Lois commented, collecting herself enough to drag her gaze from his and return it to the computer screen where it belonged. "I think I've discovered early stages of carpal tunnel syndrome thanks to this piece."

Pressing print, she pushed her chair back hurriedly and crossed to the printer just as Clark's desk phone chirped twice. She was getting that rush again, the one that she'd had when she'd discovered no one had broken the story yet. Why no one had was beyond her, but she wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

She was, however, going to look Clark in the mouth.

Turning away from the printer, she collided with him and lost her balance completely. His hands grasped her arms to keep her steady, but she twisted out of his tenuous hold as soon as her world righted itself. The last thing she needed was extended contact of any sort. Besides, he'd bumped into her.

"Jesus, Clark. Personal space mean anything to you?" she grumbled, bending to retrieve the dropped proposal.

"Sorry, Lois," he apologized, waiting for her to right herself before explaining. "Tess just called. She wants to see both of us in her office."

"Both of us?" Lois questioned, tugging on the bottom of her blouse. "Why?"

Clark shrugged. "She didn't say."

Blowing her bangs out of her eyes, she strode past him towards the elevators. "Let's not keep our fearless, bottle-job boss waiting, then."

There was a split second when she wished the doors would close before he was able to make his way through them, but once he'd inserted himself in the enclosed space beside her, the feeling passed. She reached for the invisible thread of normalcy once again and found it in Clark's barely contained grin.

"What?" she asked, shooting him a look from the corner of her eye. "I mean, I know elevators are a big thrill for good-old boys from the farm, but you've ridden in one before, Clark. I figured the thrill would be gone by now."

"Bottle-job boss, Lois?" he smirked, allowing the grin to fully take form. "Really?"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed. That color doesn't exist in nature."

"Yeah, well…you might not want to open with that if you're looking to get that Pulitzer. My suggestion would be to call her Ms. Mercer."

"Please," Lois huffed. "Besides, I'm allowed to call her out on it. We're sisters in arms when it comes to stuff like that. I just went a bit more subtle."

Clark's eyes wandered over her hair in a way that Lois was convinced was designed to take all the spare oxygen out of the tight confines of the four moving walls. She huffed irritably, squashing all thoughts of sitting at that damned table waiting for him.

"I like your hair darker." The words obliterated the tenuous defense she'd been able to craft in the limited time she'd had, and she huffed again. Neither noises of irritation seemed to faze him in the slightest. "It suits you."

She donned her armor and reached for the first available weapon in her arsenal. "Flattery won't get you anywhere, Clark. I'm not sharing the byline on this one…so you can just go out and find your own story, thank you very much."

The shift was so slight that she wasn't even sure she'd felt anything after a moment, but his reaction was exactly what she'd been hoping for. His shoulders squared and he faced forward once again.

They watched the numbers increase overhead as they ascended to the floor that Lois hoped she would claim one day. Hopefully, with this new story, she'd start putting her stamp on the world and leave the bullpen far behind.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" Clark asked suddenly, keeping his gaze fixed on the scrolling red numbers.

Lois' brow furrowed. "Calling you what?"

He shoved his hands deep into his pockets. "Clark."

Tossing her ponytail off her shoulder, she turned to regard him. "Um…because I was under the impression that was your name."

Clark's lips pulled into a thin line and his eyes rolled with that mixture of frustration and irritation that she used to go out of her way to create on a daily basis. "No, I mean…what happened to Smallville?"

Her eyes swiftly fell away from him and returned to watching the numbers. She hadn't realized she hadn't used his nickname since returning from Star City, since the disastrous wedding that stopped things before they'd had a chance to start…

"I don't know," she admitted hesitantly. "It just doesn't seem to fit anymore, does it? You're not a dorky farmboy like you used to be. Don't get me wrong…you're still a dork. But a farmboy…"

"Hmmm."

Lois glanced quickly at him out of the corner of her eye again. "Hey, I thought you'd be glad. You always hated it when I called you that."

"No," Clark said, shoving his hands even deeper into his pockets. "I didn't hate it."

Lois' heart constricted tightly in her chest and she sped through about a dozen off-colored words directed at him silently in her head. Every time she felt that one more brick was solidified in her wall against his effect on her, Clark knocked it down like it was a feather with those damn puppy dog eyes of his.

Puppies were entirely overrated.

"If you're feeling that nostalgic, I could always go back to calling you Clarkie," she quipped, hell-bent on surviving this elevator ride whether Clark would participate willingly or not.

And fates be praised, it actually looked like he'd finally caught on. A genuine smirk crossed his features and he huffed quietly. "Now, that…that I hated."

The elevator slowed considerably and came to a stop at the penthouse level.

"Come on, Clarkie," she tossed back over her shoulder as she exited through the doors. "And remember, not a word about her processed hair."

She could hear his chuckle as she strode a few paces ahead of him, grateful for the distance that the large hallway afforded them after being trapped together in that elevator for entirely too long in Lois' honest opinion.

Tess was standing at the door to her office, a smile gracing her frustratingly perfect features. Lois wondered what it must be like to look and feel that put together all the time. Half the time, she felt the need to rush to the bathroom just to make sure she hadn't put her blouse on inside-out or forgotten to add eyeliner to one of her lids.

"Lois, Clark…come in. Have a seat," Tess greeted, gesturing to the two stylish armchairs facing her desk.

Lois placed her proposal on her lap and ignored the way that Clark's arm brushed against hers as he settled himself in his chair.

Tess crossed the expensive carpet without faltering once, despite the impossibly high heel on the shoes that probably cost one of Lois' weekly paychecks. Both thoughts made her lips pull into a thin line of distaste for her shrewd, calculating boss.

And her opinion only worsened as Tess sank gracefully into the leather swivel chair and began to explain the reason for the summons.

"I was invited to New York to give a press conference on the acquisition of LutherCorp and all its subsidiaries, including the Planet, of course." One perfectly manicured hand grabbed two tickets off the desk. "And I'd like to invite the two of you to accompany me to play interference when need be and cover the story for our paper at the same time. It will be a wonderful opportunity for both of you. There will be quite a few influential people in attendance, and whatever networking you can do and contacts you can make can only benefit you in the long run, don't you think?"

Lois' eyes followed Tess' gaze as it swiveled from her to Clark and stayed on his face for the remainder of the conversation.

"We'll be flying out tonight and take a return flight on Saturday. All expenses paid, of course." When Tess' eyes flickered back to hers, she knew they had arrived at her moment to bow out gracefully and leave the redhead to whatever screwed up agenda she was pushing this week.

"I appreciate the offer and the opportunity, but I have that proposal you wanted to see right here," Lois said, placing the paper on the desk and sliding it toward her boss. "If it's alright with you, and you give it the go-ahead, I'd like to start working on it right away."

A perfectly shaped eyebrow rose slightly. "Of course, I'd forgotten all about it," Tess drawled in her calculated way as she set the tickets back on the desk to exchange them for the proposal. "This is that Linda Lake murder investigation piece, correct?"

The change in Clark's posture drew Lois' attention and she found herself staring directly into those stormy blue eyes of his. "That's the big story?" he questioned, his tone as undecipherable as the look on his face.

"Yeah…it's amazing to me that no one has snatched it up," Lois reasoned, turning her attention back to her boss. "Especially since she was in the hospital at the time, held down by electromagnetic restraints. My only guess is that the recent wave of murders cropping up all over the city has everyone preoccupied and scrambling for the big one."

Tess' eyes flew perfunctorily over the page, raising another eyebrow once she'd reached the end. "This is good work, Lane. In fact, I think you have the beginnings of an above-the-fold piece right here."

Lois' shoulders straightened and she shook her hair off her shoulder again. "Thanks. I'm sorry I won't be able to attend the conference, but I feel like if I don't move on this now, my window will close."

She didn't bother adding that she had a sneaking suspicion that she wasn't technically ever intended to be a part of this little cross-country trip to begin with. The thought of Tess and Clark in a private jet sipping champagne made her slightly sick to her stomach, but only less than the thought of having to be there to witness it.

She knew that their boss had ulterior motives as far as Clark was concerned…she wasn't blind. And that's how she knew. Because someone would have to be undoubtedly visually challenged to ignore someone like Clark Kent. Still, Clark was a big boy. He'd have to learn to start watching out for himself on the dangerous mine-field of love sooner or later, or what was left of his heart would be scattered in shredded pieces all over Kansas.

And she just didn't have the strength to be there to help him pick up those pieces anymore.

"Of course," Tess smiled sweetly, taking one of the tickets off the desk and placing it in a drawer. "I commend your commitment to this paper and the city. In fact, there might be a bonus in this for you if the story breaks before anyone else winds up publishing first." Her gaze traveled slowly to Clark, who was still sitting perfectly still in his chair. "Looks like it's just you and me, Kent. That is…if you can handle being away from your partner for a few days."

"We're not partners," they echoed in unison, earning them their third arched brow since their arrival five minutes ago.

"Clark will have loads of fun in New York, won't you Clark?" Lois posed, pushing out of her chair and collecting her proposal from her boss' hand. "You can do all the touristy stuff and get all worked up over a completely different city's elevators."

Clark's irritated glare reverberated off the armor she'd constructed to give her some level of protection against the thought of he and Tess Mercer walking around New York at night and the fact that the thought shouldn't be bothering her in the least.

Before Tess had a chance to question her on her offhanded comment, Lois gave her a tight-lipped smile. "Thanks again for the opportunity. Have a good trip," she said, effectively excusing herself with a curt nod at her boss and no more than a fleeting glance at the still agitated farmboy sitting even more stiffly in his chair.

She had to forcibly keep herself from sprinting down the hallway and thanked whomever was listening that the elevator doors opened as soon as she punched the button. A solo trip back to the bullpen would most definitely be easier than surviving the ride up.

But once the doors whooshed closed and she was alone with herself, she couldn't help thinking that solo trips were not nearly all they were cracked up to be.

In fact, they were entirely overrated.

Almost on autopilot, she eventually found her way back to her desk and began to compile a list of people she wanted to question with regard to Linda Lake's death. She'd start at Met Gen and work her way through the staff. Scrolling through her list of contacts, she jotted down the number of the admitting nurse that had taken care of Jimmy's initial paperwork before he'd been transferred to Star City.

The background work she'd collected on Linda Lake and her mysterious disappearance over two years ago was shoved into a file and was joined quickly by a list of potential interviewees before she knew it. The story was singing through her blood now and she didn't stop until she saw Clark exiting the elevators.

She knew that now was as good a time as any to head over to the hospital to begin her investigation. It was either that, or stumble her way through a goodbye that seemed to be getting awfully routine with him.

Her luck seemed to have been used up for the day, however, because the second she switched off her computer and grabbed her bag he seemed to be hovering right behind her, waiting for her to make a move.

So, she'd make one.

"Well, Clark. I'm off to the hospital to start questioning the employees. By the time you get back from New York, I'll be the talk of the town and you can be sufficiently jealous," she quipped, hoisting her bag onto her shoulder and attempting to move around him. "Have a safe trip…see you when you get back."

He took a step with her, causing her to pull up short so she didn't barrel into him for the second time that day. "Careful…" she warned lightly, shooting a quick smile at him and making another attempt to escape.

"No…you be careful, Lois," he said, his voice registering low and solemn in her ears. "Linda Lake was murdered, and whoever did it wasn't caught. That means they're still out there and if you follow this story to its end you'll be putting yourself in danger."

Lois rolled her eyes at him and took another step, which he deftly blocked. "Look, Clark…this is my job. I know what I'm doing, and if I can bring a murderer to justice, then that's what I'm going to do. Maybe he or she will wind up being connected to all these other murders that have been happening, and I can stop someone else from suffering the same fate."

Clark's eyes darkened considerably and Lois could see the wheels turning in his head. Sighing, she readjusted the bag on her shoulder. "Concern duly noted, Clark. I'll be careful. But I really have to get going."

If he tried to step in front of her again, she had already made up her mind to trample over his feet and throw an elbow if she had to. But when his hand came out and rested on her elbow, all thoughts of violence faded for a moment.

But only for a moment.

They came rushing back full force in the next, pulling her mouth into a fierce frown that didn't go unnoticed by her captor.

"Lois, I'm serious. Will you call me tomorrow and let me know how things are going?"

"Fine. And you can tell me all about the Big Apple," she replied hastily, pulling her arm out of his grasp. "That is, if you survive the flight with Tess Mercer."

The color drained from his face at her choice of words.

Lois' brow furrowed. "Clark…you look like you're going to puke."

"Let's just say I'm not the biggest fan of flying."

Her features softened at the admission and judging by the slight sheen of sweat that had broken out on his forehead, a few kind words wouldn't be completely out of order. "Clark, everything will be fine. I've flown dozens of times and the only thing you have to worry about is being bored to tears by our fearless leader. She doesn't seem like the most engaging travel companion."

"I wish you were going with us," he said, his eyes darting up to hers with barely contained anxiousness. "You'd give me something to focus on besides the possibility of crashing into a very large mountain."

"I'm flattered," she retorted sarcastically, folding her arms across her chest.

A small smile played at the corners of his mouth. "Come on, you know that you'd be making fun of me the entire time and I know you'd find a way to put your foot in it as far as Tess is concerned. It would make for good distraction."

"Well, as much as I appreciate being thought of as a distraction, I've got bigger fish to fry," she said, moving past him finally. "Everything will be fine, Clark. I'll touch base with you tomorrow, okay?"

She'd only gotten five steps before his voice reached her and stopped her dead in her tracks. "You've been a distraction since the day I met you, Lois," he said evenly, and she had to fight the losing battle within herself not to turn and meet his gaze.

His shoulders rose in a helpless shrug and his eyes fixed on hers. "But I'd miss it if the distraction was gone. So promise me you'll be careful and not do anything..."

"Too Lois?" she finished for him, surprised she'd been able to find any words at all.

His smile reached his eyes this time and the soft look in them was her undoing. She needed to leave, now.

"I promise I'll be careful."

"Good."

"Okay, then."

The step he took toward her was almost immeasurable, but she'd noticed and took one of her own backwards and away from the attempt to knock another brick to the floor like a feather.

"Bye, Lois." His words were brief and direct, but Lois could feel the feather floating to the floor fueled by the focus of his gaze and the slight clenching of his fists at his sides.

"Bye, Clark."

Turning on her heel, she made it about five more steps before she turned around and called back to him.

"And for the love of God, Smallville…don't yak all over the boss. Nothing kills a career faster…"

The force of his smile reached her from across the distance and before she could allow it to destroy any more of her carefully crafted defenses when all she'd meant to do was set him at ease, she whipped around again and climbed the stairs to the exit.

Once out on the street and away from the insane hold he had over her, she realized she didn't really care that she'd pretty much destroyed an entire row of her own bricks by gracing him with the old nickname. He'd needed reassurance and if the stupid oaf wasn't bright enough to realize that Smallville had actually began as a pointed dig, then she didn't feel the need to correct him and use his actual name.

Proper names were highly overrated, anyway.


	3. On Solid Ground

* _Author's Note: I know this seems like it's going to follow the episodes, but the inspiration came from the first one and even though I kept in the whole "Turbulence" idea of Tess and Clark going off on their own, that will most likely be the last fixed point as far as plot points. Of course, there will be stuff in the upcoming chapters that alludes to certain things that happen on the show, but they won't drive the plot. Besides, Hex was HILARIOUS and there is no way I'm going near that one with a ten foot pole._

* _Also, I forgot my disclaimer. I own nothing but a few odds and ends and none of them have made me rich, so neither will this story or my use of characters created by "Smallville". Thanks for reading and reviewing, all. Hope you enjoy!_

Chapter 3

**On Solid Ground**

There were very few things in life that Oliver Queen was afraid of. With the privilege he was born into and the lifestyle he had created for himself, precious little fazed him or was able to render him completely helpless.

Spotting Lois chatting animatedly with a nurse down the hall allowed him an up-close-and-personal look at that fear he'd avoided for the majority of his life.

She appeared to be finishing up, a wide smile on her face that he knew would be the last he'd see for the unforeseeable future. Taking a deep, steadying breath, he picked up his pace and reached her just as she was cramming a small notebook into her bag.

"Lois…"

Her ponytail went flying as she turned to face him. "Ollie! What are you doing here?"

It was completely out of his power to meet her gaze. Instead, he focused on the hazmat sign directly over her left shoulder. "Actually, I went looking for you at the Planet but they told me you were here, chasing down a lead."

At the mention of her story, her eyes lit up. "And what a lead," she preened, grinning from ear to ear. "You have no idea what I've dug up –"

"Lois –"

"Apparently, the electromagnetic fashion accessories that were keeping Linda Lake all quiet and docile were necessary because she was able to transform into water and the restraints kept her from being able to become one big bottle of Evian." Her eyes were still twinkling merrily as she plowed on ahead with little concern for whether or not he was really listening.

"My sources also told me that she wasn't allowed any visitors due to her high-priority care and that the only people to see her were her doctors, nurses and one very misplaced EMT."

"Lois…"

"Davis Bloom was seen going into her room around the time of the murder, and no one has seen him since. I'm on my way to Chloe's right now…she's been hanging out with the guy a lot lately, and I'm hoping she knows where he is, or how I can track him down so I can question him about what he saw that night, too."

When her hot news was met with silence and a grimace, she scrunched up her nose at him. "What's up with you? You can't even lob a pun at me about the fact that Linda LAKE can turn into WATER? You're slipping in your old age."

Oliver cleared his throat and shoved his hands in his pockets. There was no getting around it. He had to tell her, and tell her now, before she heard it on the news or saw it on television. There had to be coverage about it by now.

"Lois, I have a satellite system that monitors the traffic of all aircraft for Queen Industries. My chief operating officer just called…and he said that my private jet went off radar over Pennsylvania. There was an accident, and…" Squaring his shoulders, he finally brought his gaze up to meet hers. "It was the plane Tess and Clark took to New York."

He braced himself, prepared himself for the yelling. For the physical lashing out he was sure would accompany her terse, scathing verbal onslaught that would be directed at him for lack of a better place to go. Mouth set in a firm line, he had no idea how he'd be able to explain to her that despite the accident, Clark was most likely perfectly fine and would return to Metropolis with Tess, both without a scratch.

But, as always, Lois Lane completely surprised him.

After standing perfectly still for longer than he'd ever seen her motionless in all his time knowing her, he saw the smile on her face slowly disappear and the brightness in her eyes dull into a dark nothingness. In the next instant, however, she brushed past him, setting a determined pace headed towards the elevators. "Don't be ridiculous, Oliver. Clark wouldn't die without telling me."

Oliver hurried to catch up to her and placed a restraining hand on her arm. "I didn't say he was –" At her severe look, he swallowed the word and tried again. "I'm sure they're fine, but I just wanted to tell you before you found out some other way and freaked out."

"Freak out?" she snapped, shrugging her arm out of his hold. "Since when does Lois Lane freak out? Freaking out would require me to lose my cool and as we both know, my cool is the one thing I have complete control over. Nerves of steel, remember? I'm not a frickin' general's daughter for nothing, you know."

"Lois, you're rambling –"

"You're damn right I'm rambling!" she bellowed, punching the call button on the elevator. "There aren't even any mountains in Pennsylvania. You don't know what the hell you're talking about."

Oliver gave up trying to figure out what she was saying, knowing that her concern for Clark was creating havoc in that overactive mind of hers. His voice dropped an octave and he reinserted his hand on the crook of her elbow. "I sent out a dozen search and rescue teams, and I've called each of the hospitals within a 50 mile radius of the last known coordinates and I gave them Tess and Clark's descriptions. They're going to call me the minute they know anything."

"I'm telling you, Oliver. There's been a mistake. A horrible, unbelievable mistake. He was just telling me a few hours ago about how scared he was of flying. Fate is not that ironic, at least not where Clark Kent is concerned. In fact –"

Just then, her cell phone blared out in her bag and she brought terrified eyes up to his.

Stomach clenching at the look of fear and loss in her eyes, he gave her an encouraging nod and watched as she practically tore her bag apart looking for the source of the noise.

Clark.

It had to be, from the look on her face as she scanned the caller id. The fear eased a bit, but he could see her hands trembling as she pressed the on button.

"Clark?"

And then her face transformed right before his eyes. All of the tension and heartache he'd seen etched into each line of her face melted away and her eyes drifted shut.

And then, before he knew it, she was scowling at the elevator doors in front of her and her free hand was balled into a fist.

"What the hell is wrong with you? I told you to be careful, didn't I? But no…you have to go out and get involved in the first plane crash you can find, don't you? Next time, pay attention when I talk, Smallville. You're absolutely impossible!"

And she clicked her phone off and threw it back into her bag.

Shaking her bangs out of her face, she stepped into the elevator the second the doors opened for her. She shot him a brief, tight-lipped smile that nowhere near reached her eyes. "Thanks for the heads up, Oliver. I've got to get to Chloe's before the lead goes cold. Take care." And in the next instant, the doors closed and she was gone.

Oliver stared blankly at his own reflection in the shiny steel in front of him, wondering what the hell had just happened in the wake of the force known as one Lois Lane.

******************************************************************************************************************************************

"How many times am I going to have to apologize before you forget about this?"

Clark's mouth set in a firm line but he shortened his stride so she could keep up. "I think I'm entitled to being a little miffed."

"Miffed, yeah," she reasoned, shifting the grocery bag from one hip to the other. "But this man of steel thing you've got going on is getting old. I told you I'm sorry…I don't know what else you want from me."

"How about an explanation?"

"For what?"

The light at the corner turned red and they stopped to let traffic go by. "I called you so you would know I was alright and you yelled at me," he deadpanned, shooting a sideways glance at her. "And then you hung up."

Lois' eyes followed each car as it went flashing by as if they held all the answers. "It was a nervous reaction, Smallville. Sorry it offended your delicate sensibilities."

"Lois," he warned, pursing his lips.

"Survivor's guilt."

"I didn't die."

"I was drunk?"

"Nice try."

"Anaphylactic shock…"

"Funny."

She huffed, blowing her bangs out of her face. "What do you want me to say, Clark? One minute Ollie's telling me your plane went down and the next you're calling and I was just relieved to hear your stupid voice..."

The light turned green and Lois took off across the street. Clark watched her for a moment before jogging to catch up.

"That explains why you hung up," Clark said, coming up beside her. "The first time. But why did you have to call me back an hour later and then hang up on me again?"

A sheepish look crossed her face then, but was quickly replaced with a firm resolution. "Look Smallville, we can analyze my healthy dose of crazy some other time. Right now, we have to focus on Chloe and being there for her, okay?"

Clark sighed, reaching out ahead of her to open the door to the Talon. "I still can't believe this is happening. Everything seemed so perfect between them."

Lois snorted. "Yeah. Nothing says happily ever after like a psychopath jeweler and a rampaging monster. Who could go wrong with a fairytale beginning like that?"

He glanced at her again, her cynicism cutting through him and dislodging something he wasn't quite ready to explain to himself. "Don't you believe that two people can build a life together?"

Pausing at the base of the stairs, Lois sighed and settled the bag against her hip again. "Let's look at the facts, shall we? Just a little over a month ago we were dressed to the nines and watching Chloe and Jimmy try to chase down their happy ending. And - correct me if I'm wrong - but are we or are we not currently on our way to comfort my cousin after she came in dead last in that particular race?"

"C'mon, Lois…there were circumstances –"

"There always are," she retorted, cutting him off abruptly. "My father loved my mother, but there was that pesky little circumstance called cancer. Your mother loved your father, but fate decided to step in and give an otherwise healthy 48 year old man a bad ticker. You loved Lana, but –"

Clark's spine stiffened, waiting for her to continue. As an unspoken rule, they didn't discuss anything regarding Lana or anything that had happened the month Lois had been in Star City. Somehow, things were just easier that way.

When she didn't continue, however, Clark grew restless. "But…"

"Well, you're here and she's not," Lois finished quickly. "For whatever reason…again…" she added, rolling her eyes. "The two of you decided that you couldn't be together. From where I'm standing, it seems like love pretty much blows."

Clark considered her words for a moment, but in the end, he shook his head. "No way. My mother wouldn't trade a single moment she had with my dad, regardless of how things turned out. And I'm sure your father feels the same way about your mom."

"Whatever, Smallville," Lois grumbled, although Clark could clearly see her hesitant acceptance of his argument. Her features had softened considerably, but only for a minute. Hoisting the bag further up on her hip, she began climbing the stairs. "I only have an hour before I've got to go meet a source. What do you say we curb this conversation around Chloe…unless you want to take the pen she's signing those divorce papers with and just jab it in her eye. Might be less painful…"

Clark looked heavenward, as he often did when it came to the woman standing in front of him. Sometimes, he felt that if he could bottle up whatever it was that made Lois…well, Lois…he'd be able to solve the world's energy crisis.

"I'm not the one who has a long, intimate relationship with putting my foot in my mouth in situations like this," he reasoned, coming up to stand alongside her. "Maybe you can dish out the ice cream and I'll do the talking."

Her eyes flashed dangerously at him. "I don't put my foot in my mouth all that often." Clark's eyebrows raised incredulously and her scowl deepened. "Okay…but I'm always really sorry afterwards and more often than not I apologize."

"Right…"

"Besides, this is my cousin we're talking about here. The last thing I want to do is hurt her," she reasoned, her chin jutting out determinedly.

"I know that," Clark said, reaching out and knocking on the door. "I didn't mean –"

Chloe opened the door then, cutting off Clark's apology as he saw the dark shadows under her eyes. "Hey, you guys," she greeted, stepping aside to let them in.

Lois remained in the doorway, her eyes swooping over her cousin's tiny frame. "You look like crap," she observed without hesitation, but upon hearing her own words her eyes flew to Clark, who was staring at her in disbelief. "Uh…I mean, you look like you haven't slept since, well, you know, but of course you probably haven't been sleeping. You're probably so used to Jimmy sleeping beside you and now that he's not here it's only natural that you'd be having trouble and –"

"Chloe," Clark interrupted, forcefully grabbing the bag of groceries out of Lois' hands and seriously contemplating shutting the door on the her in the process, "What I think Lois is trying to say…badly…is that you should really make sure you get some rest. We both know this has been hard on you."

Chloe let out a short, clipped laugh. "Hard? I think that's the understatement of the century."

Lois barreled past Clark, shoving him aside and reaching out to her cousin. "Of course it is," she stated, shooting a glare over her shoulder at Clark. "That's why we brought you some food and some movies…and some company, if you want it."

Chloe walked over to the couch and sank into the cushions. "I appreciate the gesture, guys, but I don't think I'd be the best company right now. I've got to figure out a way to get Jimmy to talk to me so we can try and straighten all of this out."

Clark set the bag down on the counter and moved to join her on the couch. "Chloe…what if Jimmy doesn't want to fix this? Do you know what you're going to do?"

Lois groaned audibly and inserted herself between Clark and Chloe among the cushions, sending a not-so-subtle elbow directly into Clark's side. He scowled at her, but moved over to allow for more space between them. Her physical assaults never hurt him, but he didn't want to give her the satisfaction of thinking they did.

"What Smallville here is trying to say is that if Jimmy's going to be a typical, stubborn male and not realize that he's walking away from the best thing that ever happened to him, do you have a backup plan?" Lois asked.

Chloe's eyes grew even more hollow and she shook her head slowly. "No. I guess I'm just not ready to face the possibility that we might actually be over before we really got a chance to begin."

Of their own accord, Clark's eyes found their way to Lois. She was staring at Chloe with a mixture of compassion and sympathy that Clark had never seen on her face before. She made a small noise in the back of her throat and her arms wound around her cousin, holding onto her for all she was worth.

Clark could see the strength Chloe was getting from Lois and for the first time in his relationship with his best friend, he didn't feel all that needed. "How about I go downstairs and get us some coffee?" he asked quietly.

When neither of the women seated next to him said a word, he got up and left them to share their moment without him.

As he busied himself with the coffee maker and mugs, Clark let his mind wander to Chloe and Jimmy's wedding. They'd been happy that day. There was no denying that. There had been real love between them and no one could convince him otherwise. So how did their chance get taken away so abruptly?

And just like that, he was thinking about Lois again. About the chance _they _had almost taken and how it, too, had been taken away.

He'd gotten so good at putting it out of his mind that it almost surprised him when the scent of her hair rolled like a smoky haze across his memory. He hadn't meant to make a grab for her like that, but once his hand had closed around her wrist, he couldn't seem to stop himself from pulling her back to him.

Watching Lois Lane walk away had never been something he'd been particularly good at.

Pouring the hot liquid into the mugs, he allowed himself a small smirk. Actually, watching her walk away was something he was VERY good at. Despite being an 'intergalactic traveler' he was also very human and very male. Who wouldn't watch Lois Lane walk away?

But when he'd seen her practically sprinting away from the potential intimacy created by the music and the lights at the wedding, everything within him had screamed out to stop her.

And then, of course, he'd ruined it all.

Sighing, Clark grabbed up the three mugs and made his way carefully back up the stairs. Things had worked out the way they worked out, and there was no turning back now. He'd made his decision, and so had she…and so had Jimmy and Chloe.

When he re-entered the apartment, he saw the girls still huddled closely together on the sofa, Lois' arm draped across Chloe's shoulders. They were looking at Chloe's wedding album, which frankly surprised and baffled Clark.

"What are you doing?" he asked, setting the mugs down on the coffee table. "Do you really think looking at your wedding photos is the best thing to –"

"Clark," Chloe interrupted gently. "While I appreciate the concern and all, this is what I want. I want to look at these and try to hold onto the fact that I'm not crazy. We did love each other and I'm not just making it all up."

Lois brought her eyes up to him as well and their gazes met. Without speaking, Clark knew that Lois was just as concerned as him, but to her credit, she simply tightened her arm around her cousin and squeezed it reassuringly.

"Besides, you looked gorgeous that day. Nothing picks up your spirits quicker than checking yourself out when you've looked your best," Lois commented, giving Chloe an encouraging smile.

Clark remained silent, watching the two of them as they slowly flipped through the album. Sad smiles would grace Chloe's face every so often, quickly replaced with trembling lips and hands in the next instant. Lois' arm remained firmly across her shoulders, rubbing softly whenever she noticed the same changes take place.

Staring at the dark-haired woman that occupied more of his thoughts than he should allow, Clark wondered at the anomaly that was Lois Lane. Brash and rude on a good day, she was the most quick-tempered, illogical woman he'd ever met. But watching her sit silently beside her younger cousin, offering a level of support that Clark knew was beyond his abilities, he knew that he couldn't imagine his life without her in it anymore. Four years ago, when she'd barreled into Smallville and turned his world completely upside down, he'd been anxious for her to barrel right back out.

Closing his eyes against the thought, he sent up a silent prayer that fate knew better than to let that happen.

Chloe's voice brought him back to the present, and he opened his eyes to find her tracing her finger along the edge of one of the photos. "You know, I always knew that the two of you were surprised by the thought of me and Jimmy. I knew when I started dating him that you both wondered what I saw in him."

Lois opened her mouth to refute her cousin's claims, but Chloe silenced her with a look. "Don't deny it, Lois. Your little impromptu speech at the engagement party might have been inappropriate, but you were just being honest. But I fell in love with him…and you can't help who you fall in love with, can you?"

Clark's gaze remained fixed on Lois' face as a tidal wave of emotions washed over her features. His ears picked up on the increasingly rapid beating of her heart and his own responded in kind. Half of him desperately wanted her to look up and meet his eyes; the other half desperately wanted to superspeed back to the farm and deadbolt the front door.

She didn't glance his way, however, and a hollowness took up residence in his chest as she answered her cousin's question.

"No, you can't," she admitted, softly. "But you can learn from your mistakes and try harder to avoid them in the future. So the next time you fall in love with someone you shouldn't, you know better than to act on it."

The air in the room seemed to disappear along with the end of her sentence, and Clark found it almost impossible to breathe.

It was the second time in as many hours that Lois had made a comment like that and her pessimism bothered him at a level he wasn't ready to explore. "So then the answer is to be alone for the rest of your life?" he asked before thinking, regretting the words the second they left his mouth. He knew he sounded like a hypocrite, and his proof was right there in Chloe's eyes.

She snorted audibly. "And you're saying you disagree, Clark?"

Fidgeting in his chair, he cleared his throat. "I just think that it's a pretty bleak outlook to have at our age, don't you?"

Chloe's eyes zeroed in on him and she considered him for a long moment. Obviously, she thought better of saying anything with Lois sitting right next to her for which Clark was immensely grateful. He was saved from further awkwardness when Chloe's phone rang from across the room. She rose to answer it and her features pulled into an unreadable mask as she glanced at the caller id. "Hello?" she greeted haltingly, her eyes focused on an invisible spot across the room. Clark saw those same eyes dart back to her two visitors quickly before she turned away and mumbled quietly into the phone. "Give me ten minutes. Isis Foundation."

Snapping the phone shut she shoved it in the pocket of her jeans and crossed to the door. "It's one of my clients. I have to go," she said hurriedly, pulling on her coat and grabbing her purse. "Thanks, guys. Thanks for checking up on me. I'll call you both later." Smiling at them, she let herself out and closed the door before either of them could raise a hand in farewell.

Lois raised an eyebrow at the hasty retreat. "Goodbye to you to, Chlo."

Clark stared at the door, his brow furrowed and his mouth drawn into a small frown. "That was a little odd, don't you think?"

Lois huffed and began clearing the mugs off the coffee table. "This whole evening has been odd, Smallville. Why should an impromptu exit be any stranger than anything else that happened tonight?"

Sighing wearily, Clark got up to help her in the kitchen. As he began to put the groceries away a thought struck him. "You don't think she was going to meet Davis Bloom, do you?"

Lois' hand paused over the sink but in the next instant, she turned on the water full blast and began rinsing the mugs. "No way. She said she was meeting a client. Probably some wayward kid who blew up his mother's kitchen by blinking or something like that."

Clark positioned himself against the counter to her right and folded his arms across his chest. "If she was serious about wanting to work things out with Jimmy, why would she go running if Davis did call?"

"Look," Lois snapped, whirling to face him with a dangerous glint in her eyes. "She's not cheating on Jimmy. She loves him, and just because he's being a world-class bonehead doesn't mean she's running straight into the arms of another guy."

"Lois –"

"I'm kind of surprised at you, Clark," she continued, eyes narrowing as her tirade built up steam. "You claim to be her best friend and the first chance you get, you're accusing her of running off to some illicit affair."

Clark reached out and put a restraining hand on her arm. "I'm not accusing her of anything, Lois. I just think it's strange that she's thinking about Jimmy one minute and then going off to meet up with Davis the next."

Lois' glare burned straight through him as she whipped her arm out of his grasp. "And you're the leading authority on all things good and moral, aren't you?" she snapped. "I mean, you've never done that before…thought about one person and then ran off to be with another. No…not the ever-righteous Clark Kent."

Clark's stomach clenched as her words sliced through him, chopping away at every defense he'd thrown up to protect himself from having this particular conversation. "Lois…"

But apparently, having this particular conversation was not in Lois Lane's grand scheme. Getting as far away from him physically, however, seemed to play a major part.

"Just answer me one question, Smallville. How does the world look from up there on your high horse?" she snapped, grabbing her own coat and stalking off towards the door.

Before he knew it, the slam of the oak reverberated throughout the room and he was left staring blankly at the empty space all around him.

It took all of about a second for him to make the decision to go after her.

Before he knew it, he was blocking her path and barring her escape from the Talon. The initial surprise in her eyes faded quickly enough, replaced by a barely contained anger. "If you don't mind, get the hell out of my way, Clark."

"I mind," he said quietly although his tone was resolute and firm.

"Look, if you don't –"

Her phone chirped from within the confines of her purse and she blew an agitated breath out as she searched for it. "You better pray that this is something that will save your life right now, Smallville…"

Her voice trailed off as she placed the phone to her ear and checked her message. Clark watched as her eyes widened slightly and the anger seeped out of her with each passing second. In its place grew disappointment and worry, and her hand shook slightly as she hung up the phone.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concern for her overriding any thoughts of arguing with her further. Her face was a mask of barely controlled emotions and his anxiety began to get the better of him. "Lois? What is it?"

Shaking herself slightly, her eyes darted up to his quickly before she let them focus on the doors over his shoulder. "That was Davis Bloom. He was calling to cancel the appointment we made earlier to discuss what happened at the hospital. He said something came up and he wouldn't be able to make it."

Clark took a step toward her, but Lois had her defenses back up before his foot even set down on the floor. "Whatever. That doesn't mean they're together, right?" she asked, not quite able to meet his eyes.

His gaze swept over her and he realized that to give voice to the obvious right now wouldn't help anyone, least of all a very hurt and vulnerable Lois Lane.

"Right," he replied, taking another step in her direction. "He could've gotten an emergency call that he had to respond to."

"Yeah." Her eyes finally met his and he could see her appreciation wash over her features, releasing him from the doghouse he'd put himself in earlier. "Yeah, you're right, of course. Better luck next time, right?"

"Right," he echoed again.

They left the Talon then, silently crossing the now deserted street and watching the streetlights come on. Clark had always liked Main Street at this time of night. Families were settling down for the evening, having dinner and sharing the stories of their day. The world seemed to quiet itself long enough to give them time to share with each other without distraction.

Metropolis never allowed for a quiet moment. There was always something happening and distractions were more common than not. Still, Clark found himself being drawn to it in a way that was still entirely unexplainable. The farm held all the memories of his past but Metropolis was his future.

"Penny for your thoughts," Lois murmured, shooting a sideways glance at him as her shoe kicked a pebble down the sidewalk.

Clark realized that if anyone was to understand what he'd just been thinking, it was the woman walking by his side. The thought buzzed through his body not unpleasantly and he found himself smiling despite the rollercoaster of a day they'd just shared.

"I was just thinking that I like how quiet it is here in Smallville, but I also like how loud it is in Metropolis," he said, shrugging nonchalantly. Lois slowed her pace then, and it took him a moment to realize that she wasn't keeping up.

Stopping, he turned back to her. "What's wrong?"

A small smile pulled at the corners of her mouth and she swept her bangs out of her eyes. "I was thinking the same thing."

The buzzing increased in intensity and Clark found himself wanting to reach out for her hand. But when she began walking again, allowing her arm to brush casually against his, he knew that was one thing he definitely could not do. Not if he was going to stay sane.

"Who would have thought that Lois Lane and Clark Kent would ever be on the same page?" she mused quietly, a lightness entering her tone that he was incredibly grateful for. Some of the pressure of the evening seemed to dissipate as her words filled the air around them and Clark found his own mouth tugging into a smile.

"Isn't that one of the signs of the apocalypse?" he replied, nudging her lightly with his arm.

A soft laugh escaped her as she shoved him back, their footsteps falling evenly on the pavement. Together.

"Doomsday, for sure," she said, smiling over at him.

And when the desire to reach out for her hand overwhelmed him again, Clark let himself believe, just for a second, that someday he'd allow himself to do it.

Until then, he'd walk down the streets of Smallville with her tonight. And tomorrow, he'd sit across the desk from her in Metropolis.

And it was enough.

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Thank you for reading and reviewing. Hope you're enjoying!


	4. Chaos Theory

_Thanks for reading and reviewing, everyone! It means more than I can say…_

**Chapter 4:**

**Chaos Theory**

After spending five minutes with Davis Bloom, Lois was sure of two things: One – He was in love with her cousin. Two – There was something about him that made her stomach twist in apprehension.

The longer she spent in his company, the worse the pain got until she had to excuse herself and splash copious amounts of tepid water on her face. She looked pale and drawn in the low lighting of the bathroom of the coffee shop she'd chosen for their rescheduled interview, and as she brought her hand up to fan over her cheek, she let out a shaky breath.

She couldn't put her finger on it, and that, more than anything, upset her. Sure, she was predisposed to hating his guts because of her suspicions regarding his role in Chloe and Jimmy's breakup. But it was more than that. Every time he'd looked directly into her eyes during the interview, she'd felt a coldness sweep across her skin and the overwhelming feeling that he was stealing something from her irrationally invaded every nerve of her being.

Lois squared her shoulders and blew out another breath. She was behaving like a complete moron. She'd never met Davis Bloom before today, and if he and her cousin were carrying on then that was their business. She would not play morality police in Chloe's life. She could barely keep track of her own screwed up relationships.

Nodding once into the mirror, she collected her bag and rejoined him at the small corner table near the door. She only had a few more questions for him, thank God, and then she could go home for the evening and lose herself in the world of Kung Fu Theater.

"Sorry, Mr. Bloom," she excused herself, sliding into the seat across from him.

He smiled at her, although the smile barely reached his eyes. "Davis…"

"Right. Davis," she repeated, pulling out her notebook and pen once she was settled. "So, where were we?"

"I had just told you that I had been looking for a patient of mine and found myself in Linda Lake's room by accident," he said, a strong hand curling around his almost empty mug. "And you were about to tell me to stay away from your cousin."

Lois' eyes flashed up to his and found him staring at her with a knowing look on his face.

She thought about feigning ignorance for a moment, but the second she opened her mouth she knew that would not be enough. "If I thought it would do any good, I would've led off the interview with that piece of information," she said, folding her hands together in front of her. "But I will say this. If my cousin is going to try and get her marriage back, and you are her friend, then you'll do everything in your power to support her decision and not make it a tough one."

A small smile played across his lips. "You're just as straightforward as ever, I see."

Lois' brows drew together. "As ever? This is the first time we've ever met."

Something flashed in Davis' eyes and his gaze faltered from hers for a second. "Actually, we met once before, but you wouldn't remember. You weren't exactly…yourself."

Her own gaze faltered, but for a completely different reason. "Oh, man. How drunk was I?" she asked, frantically trying to recall their original meeting.

"It's not important," Davis said, waving his hand absently. "What is important is that Chloe is happy. If that means I leave her alone, then I'll leave her alone. But I'm not planning on going anywhere until she asks me."

Their gazes held across the table in a silent stand-off, and Lois' eyes narrowed when she saw that he meant every single word. She was more sure than ever that Chloe had in fact met up with him the other night when she'd run out of the Talon.

"What do you say we get back to the interview?" she offered calmly, although the sick feeling had begun to wash over her once again.

"I don't know how much more help I can be," he shrugged, draining the last of his coffee. "I've told you everything I know."

"What about the fact that you are the last reported person to see Linda Lake alive? There's got to be something you're not remembering about that night. She was found murdered not even ten minutes after a nurse saw you leaving her room." Flipping back through her notepad, her finger came to rest on the important piece of information. "There was only one patient signed in by you that night and that patient was on a completely different floor."

Davis' eyes darkened considerably, his lashes lowering to half-mast. "And what exactly are you implying, Ms. Lane?"

"Lois," she said, angling her head to the side and meeting his gaze head-on. "I'm not implying anything. I'm just asking you to try and remember even the smallest details. You never know what may or may not be the key to finding Linda Lake's murderer."

The tightening of his hand around his now empty mug didn't go unnoticed. "Well, as I've said, I've told you all I know. I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help, but if you'll excuse me…"

Pushing out of her chair at the same time as him, she cut off his escape and thrust her hand out towards him. "Thank you for your time. I'm sure that once I put all this together the answer will just leap off the page right at me," she said, wagging her notebook in the air.

Giving her a tight-lipped smile, Davis shook her hand quickly and sidestepped around her. Before he could disappear through the doors, Lois called out to him.

"Oh, and if you see my cousin before I do, would you tell her I need to talk to her?"

Hand on the doorknob, he nodded woodenly without facing her and then escaped onto the busy street to get lost among the thread of people headed home for the evening.

Sighing wearily, Lois wiped the self-satisfied smirk from her face and figured it was time she did the same.

The next morning, she found herself at the Planet much earlier than she normally arrived. Her story was itching to be written, but she couldn't figure a way to write the ending without sounding biased and slanderous. She needed more proof, but she had enough for a preliminary article establishing the fact that Linda Lake's murder was not, in fact, forgotten about and that the trail to the killer was most definitely heating up.

Maybe she'd get lucky and someone would phone in an anonymous tip thanks to the article.

People began arriving and tossing greetings her way, but she barely registered any of them until she heard the deep voice that somehow always seemed to penetrate even her most focused of moments.

"Morning, Lois."

"Hey," she tossed out, accompanying it with a quick smile so his girlish sensibilities wouldn't be offended and continued typing like mad. She'd finally found her stride and if she kept this up, she'd have this one finished before lunch, leaving her with plenty of time to go back to the hospital to do a bit more digging.

"Begins only has one g."

"What?" Turning, the top of her head almost collided with his chin. He was leaning down to get a better look at her screen, reading over her shoulder in that maddening way he knew drove her completely crazy.

"Your title. Linda Lake Murder Investigation Begins. Only one g in begins."

"Thank you Webster's Dictionary," she grumbled, turning back to her screen. "And what did I tell you about crowding me, Smallville?"

"I don't remember," he feigned, smirking, leaning even further into her personal space. "Want to remind me again?"

Lois could feel the heat of his body radiating off of him. Her own skin shivered in response, knowing that if he didn't back off soon she was going to do something foolish like kiss him.

Or decapitate him.

"Back off, champ," she warned, not so subtly rolling her chair back and over his feet.

Instead of the irritated cry of pain she'd expected and planned for, he graced her with soft laughter as he moved quickly to his own desk and shrugged out of his suit jacket. "You seem to be in a chipper mood today, Lois. Story going well?"

"It's going great, thank you," she said, turning her full attention back to the piece in question. "With any luck, after this story goes to print the murderer will slip up and it will only be a matter of time before he's caught."

Clark's silence was her only answer, and when she looked up at him she could see that he was gearing up for one of what she liked to call his 'protective lectures'. Sure enough, her shoulders squared just in time for his opening pitch.

"Maybe you should slow down a bit with this story, Lois."

"And why would that be, Clark?" she asked dryly, falling into her side of the now-patented routine.

"Well," his gaze shot around the bullpen, not lingering on any one thing long enough to matter. "For one thing, the police themselves have said they don't have any leads. And if you go around shaking things up you might run into trouble that you weren't expecting."

"That's my job, Smallville. What else you got?" she fired back, arching an eyebrow.

His eyes finally met hers, and she could tell from his expression that their little volleying game was not so funny to him anymore. "How about the fact that if this person could move through a secure hospital undetected and literally get away with murder…what makes you think they'd hesitate to hurt you if given half the chance?"

Lois sighed, her patience wearing thin but her regard for Clark held her emotions in check. He was incredibly overprotective and on any given day the care with which he treated her made her feel things she shouldn't be feeling. But she had a job to do, and if he couldn't respect that…the one thing she had left in the whole world that made sense to her…then he'd just have to politely move out of the way.

"I carry my phone with me at all times. I have two cans of pepper spray in my bag and a Swiss Army Knife. My army brat training is enough to get out of a tight spot and besides, I eat my Wheaties." When her little joke was met with stony silence, she sighed again.

"Smallville, the protective thing? It's appreciated and all, but really. Enough is enough. I'm a big girl and this is my job," she emphasized, gesturing to the bullpen at large. "I don't tell you not to chase the important stuff because you might get a boo boo. And I expect the same courtesy from you."

Clark's eyes flashed like he wanted to say something, but to her relief, he thought better of it and settled himself in front of his own computer. "Whatever, Lois. Just be careful."

"Always, Smallville," she chirped with a grin. "Always."

They passed the rest of the morning in companionable silence working on their respective stories. Lois was just putting the finishing touches on her conclusion when the copy boy – the one who's name always eluded her – approached her desk with an arrangement of flowers.

"Ms. Lane, a courier just dropped these off for you," he announced, a silly grin lighting his face as he placed them gently on the desktop.

Lois looked up from her computer screen, her brow furrowed. "Flowers?"

"Seems you have an admirer," the eager young intern said, his cheeks flushing quickly.

"Thanks, uh…" Searching her memory for his name, she simultaneously began looking for a card among the yellow roses.

"Jeff."

Clark's low voice supplied her with the answer, and when she looked up to thank him she saw him staring at the large arrangement now separating them.

"Yeah. Thanks, Jeff," she said, giving the boy a quick smile and resuming her search for the card. She wasn't aware of the kid's departure, but she was intensely aware that Clark had not resumed his typing.

Clearing her throat, she finally fished the card out of the tangle of stems.

"So…who sprung for the roses?"

Lois avoided his gaze, the one she could now feel trained on her face.

"You know that guy from first class I was telling you about?" she asked, shrugging as she chose not to complete the thought. Mark had been nice enough, but the chances of a second date were not all that likely.

"Right."

An awkward silence fell over them, one in which Lois tucked the card out of sight and resumed her own typing as quickly as she could. Clark's keyboard, however, remained untouched.

"I never took you as a flower kind of woman," he said finally. The statement was just strange enough to earn her full attention once again.

"What?" she asked, staring at him in confusion. "And why wouldn't I be a 'flower kind of woman'?"

Clark's own expression was completely unreadable as he considered the arrangement sitting innocently on the corner of her desk. Shrugging, he said, "Monster Truck Rally tickets…the latest Metallica album…Season 4 of Kung Fu Theater…"

"What?" she asked again, her eyes sliding back and forth between the bouquet and his face.

He shrugged again, as if it was completely obvious and should be to her as well. "Those things…you'd like all those things a lot better than some unoriginal flowers that'll wind up dying anyway, wouldn't you?"

Her mouth opened to retort, but she found that the words wouldn't come. He was right. She would much rather receive those as tokens of admiration than a bunch of flowers that would most definitely perish under her forgetful watch.

"That doesn't mean I don't appreciate the gesture," she felt the need to point out. An overwhelming desire to throw something at his infuriating head overtook her. She hated that he knew her like that. The fact that he knew _exactly_ what would make her happy didn't please her in the slightest. In fact, it made her downright angry. Didn't he understand that this kind of thing was off limits between them now?

A muscle in his jaw jumped and his eyes darkened considerably as he let his gaze fall away from hers and back to his computer screen. "I take it that means a second date is in the works?" he questioned, attempting for nonchalance she assumed, but failing miserably. The tense, clipped tone of his voice jumpstarted her nerve endings and the reaction took her by surprise. He almost sounded…

Jealous.

And she almost liked it.

The situation was quickly spiraling out of her realm of comfort and she hated the fact that she'd allowed it to once again take over her concentration and focus. Shaking her hair off her shoulders, she redoubled her efforts to put all her attention into her story and averted her own eyes to her own screen.

"I don't know. Haven't thought about it," she said, making sure he could hear and understand the finality in her tone. She was not going to discuss her personal business any further. Not here, and not with him.

They couldn't do that kind of thing anymore.

Matching scowls reflected off the screens of the two reporters, neither aware of Jeff's return to the bullpen until he was standing right on top of them.

"Ms. Lane, one more thing dropped off for you," he said, the blush overtaking his whole face now. "You're mighty popular today."

"Can the commentary, kid," she said, snatching the letter out of his hand. The smile slid off his face so quickly that Lois felt an instant stab of remorse. "Uh…look, Jack –"

"Jeff."

Sparing a quick glance at Clark before turning to the intern, she offered an apologetic smile. "I'm really busy, so if anything else happens to get delivered for me, put it in the break room and I'll grab it on my way out, okay?"

Jeff's face relaxed and he nodded his understanding. "Sure thing, Ms. Lane. Sorry to bother you."

Lois sighed at his retreating form, gearing up for round two of the awkward and strange. She noticed, however, that besides Clark's assistance with what's-his-name's name, he hadn't looked up or stopped working. Seemingly in the clear, she checked the front of the envelope for a return address, but the only writing on the outside was her name in neat, unremarkable handwriting.

Intrigued, she slid her finger under the fold and removed the letter inside. But once her eyes absorbed the words written on the paper, all thoughts of intrigue flew out of her mind.

_Stop looking into the Linda Lake murder if you know what's good for you._

_This is your first, last and only warning._

She felt the color drain from her face as the threat washed over her, but moments later her shock was replaced with boiling, white hot anger. More than ever, she was determined to nail this son of a bitch.

Too late, she realized she heard silence coming from Clark's direction again, and when she looked over at him she found him staring with fierce concentration at the piece of paper still clutched tightly in her hands.

Folding it quickly, she shoved it into her bag. "Stupid love note," she said, rolling her eyes for effect. "Must've forgot to put it with the flowers."

Clark's face remained rigid, his jaw clenched hard, eyes flashing dangerously and for one crazy instant, Lois could almost believe that he'd seen the letter. Shaking it off as illogical and impossible, she cleared her throat and resumed her work on formatting the article in question.

She could feel him staring at her, but she wasn't going to share the letter with him. There was no way. He'd go all caveman on her again and demand that she drop the story before something bad happened. And she just didn't have the energy to go another round right now.

Still, when an entire minute had elapsed and he remained in exactly the same position, she chanced another glance at him from around her computer screen and saw the warring emotions battling across his face. Figuring the safest course of action was to remove herself from the situation entirely, she saved her progress and clicked off her monitor.

"Going somewhere?" he questioned, his eyes flashing with something that Lois could only classify as worry. But why he'd be worried about her…

Unless he'd actually seen the letter…

Shaking off the possibility once more as impossible, she grabbed her bag and her press pass. "Yeah. I think I'm going to head back to the hospital and do a follow up interview with the nurse. I was checking some of my facts and there's a gap or two I want to fill in. Catch you later, Smallville."

Heading towards the stairs, she realized that it wasn't actually a lie. She'd stop at the hospital first to see if they had a particular EMT's handwriting on file. If not, there was no reason she couldn't swing by his apartment for a follow up interview with him as well, was there? And if he wasn't actually there and she just so happened to find any paperwork she'd be able to match up with her letter, then she'd consider it a successful day.

"Either way, I'll get you, Davis Bloom," she muttered, taking the stairs two at a time.

************************************************************************

Despite his ability to move faster than the speed of sound, he slowed his pace down to a near-crawl the closer he got to Davis Bloom's apartment. If he found Lois where he had a hunch he would find Lois, he would need every moment of clarity he could afford himself right now.

The letter she'd received at the Planet was an outright threat and it was all he could do not to rip the offending paper out of her hands and demand that she drop the story.

But his will to live was stronger than that.

Muttering under his breath in frustration, he focused on trying to come up with an excuse for his soon-to-be presence at Davis' place. Lois hadn't told him her destination after her pit stop at the hospital, and he couldn't very well come out and tell her that he could see through solid objects, or that he could hear her when she was barely breaking a whisper.

Luck was on his side, however. Lois' car was parked right outside.

_Subtle_.

Rolling his eyes, he yanked the lobby door open and prayed he would bump into her on her way out.

Searching the ground floor and coming up Lois-less, he sighed and focused as hard as he could on filtering out all the other sounds invading his mind, searching for the now-familiar heartbeat that signaled she was alright.

It called out to him immediately, steady and strong. Pressing the call button on the elevator, he leaned against the wall and settled on telling her that he'd gone out for lunch and spotted her car. At least the story would put her on the defensive, forcing her to explain why she was breaking and entering and possibly eliciting an explanation about what she'd hoped to find.

The plan began to unravel the second he spotted Davis Bloom opening the lobby door. Instincts kicking into overdrive, he sped around the corner and through the stairwell door before he was spotted. Within seconds, he was outside Davis' door and all thoughts of subtlety were tossed out the proverbial window as he barreled into the apartment.

Lois jumped at the sound of the intrusion and whipped around guiltily with a stack of papers in her hand. Upon seeing him, she clutched her free hand to her chest and blew out an angry breath.

"Smallville, what the hell –"

His ears picked up the jingling of keys from down the hallway and without a second thought, he grabbed her hand and scanned the room quickly. Finding the hall closet fairly empty, he pulled her along after him, blocking out her irate protestations as he opened the door, tossed her inside and followed her in moments before Davis' keys met the keyhole of his front door.

Even in the semi-darkness he could see Lois gearing up for a tirade. His hand darted up to cover her mouth and he nodded slightly towards the door. Her eyes narrowed, but when she heard the front door open they widened again and stared back at him in surprise.

Clark shifted slightly to angle his head for better hearing, hoping that Davis' stop at his apartment was just that – a stop. He didn't relish the thought of being stuck in a hallway closet for the remainder of a day that, for all intents and purposes, had not been on his list of favorites to begin with.

Lois shifted her own body then, and all thoughts of vacating the small confines flew out of his mind. Her hands rested against his chest, keeping a natural barrier between them…but not much of one. He could feel the closeness of her body in every nerve of his own, and he wasn't sure whether it was the scent of her hair or the lack of oxygen in the close confines that had him feeling slightly dizzy.

His eyes had adjusted to the lack of light enough to see that Lois' senses were on full alert as well. She was now staring at the door, holding her breath, head inclined to pick up the slightest movement from outside.

Clark slowly removed his hand from over her mouth, realizing too late that there wasn't much room to maneuver his arm away from her completely. He let his hand settle on her upper arm, and the second his skin came into contact with hers he felt her tense up under his touch.

Frowning slightly, he focused on her profile and tried to rid himself of the sinking feeling he got from the change in her posture. She was stiff against him now, pushing at his chest with light pressure as if to give herself some distance. His frown deepened as he rationalized that the she was the reason they were in this predicament in the first place.

The sound of Davis' footsteps across the wood floors grew increasingly louder, and he could feel Lois suck in a nervous breath. His arm instinctively tightened around her waist, bringing her flush against him without the pretense of her hands to keep them apart.

The entirety of his focus was on her face now, watching as it slowly relaxed at the sound of the footsteps disappearing into the other room. She began to pull away from him and Clark knew she meant to make a run for it, but his arms kept her in place. There was no way they had enough luck to make it to Davis' front door before he heard them and reappeared to investigate. Especially since Lois had about as much finesse as a bull in a china shop on a good day.

Her eyes found his questioningly, eyebrow raised in silent argument. He shook his head, letting her know that they were going to stay put until Davis left his apartment or some grace of God occurred to allow for their escape.

She wriggled in his arms, trying to regain some of that personal space she'd lost from only moments before, but the movement did little to free her and more than its fair share of driving him slowly insane.

His senses were filled with her now…her scent, the feel of her skin, the heat radiating off her body…all were beginning to overwhelm him to the point of no return. He'd been so careful to keep his distance from her since the wedding, calculating just how close to her he could be without thoughts of kissing her invading his mind and taking up permanent residence. And he'd felt that he was winning that particular battle with himself.

Until now.

Something in her eyes flashed and for the first time in a long time, Clark felt as if she was letting him see into her without the pretense of the boundaries she'd tossed up to protect herself from whatever had shifted and changed between them. He reached out for that something and held her gaze steadily, his thumb brushing lightly back and forth across her upper arm without even being fully aware he was doing so.

He knew he should be listening for Davis and any impending signs that he was aware of their presence in his home, but the only thing he could hear was the erratic heartbeat emanating from the woman who was now beginning to blush in his arms.

His eyes flickered down to her lips, pursed in a tight line at first but falling open under his gaze, and his head inclined towards hers so slowly that time almost seemed to move backwards within their little hiding spot.

A million thoughts raced through his mind as he felt her hands ball into fists against his chest. A million memories of her and all the moments they'd spent together over the past four years flooded over him, consuming him to the point of total distraction. This wasn't how this was supposed to happen…trapped in a closet, the threat of being arrested for trespassing a very real possibility…

But before he could put a stop to his own progress, Lois increased the pressure of her hands against him and averted her eyes to the fingers that were now shaking slightly over his heart.

The gesture was small, but in its clarity Clark knew that she was finding the strength to be strong for the both of them. In that moment, he was more certain than ever that Lois understood him even when he couldn't understand himself.

The thought both terrified him and excited something in his blood that had Chloe's words burning repeatedly through his mind.

_Lois Lane is a part of your life now_.

Closing his eyes against the assault on his senses, he took a steadying breath and forced himself to remember that he needed to be focused on getting them out of here without being caught. At the same moment, he heard her sharp intake of breath and the sounds of water running from the other room.

"Shower," she mouthed, her eyes meeting his hopefully.

Giving the outer room a quick scan and seeing Davis moving into his bathroom, he nodded at her and grabbed her hand. Once he saw that the coast was clear, he twisted the knob gently and proceeded to the front door as fast as he could with Lois in tow.

There was a grand total of fifteen seconds of relief and silence as they made their way into the elevator before turning towards each other and shouting simultaneously.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"What were you thinking, Lois?"

"Almost gave me a heart attack –"

"Invasion of privacy mean anything to you?"

"Bursting through the door like some damn superhero come to save the day!"

"How about breaking and entering?"

"Just once I'd like to be able to do my job without worrying about getting a lecture from you!"

"I'm pretty sure racking up felonies isn't on your list of rules of good reporting!"

The elevator slowed to a halt at the lobby and as soon as the doors opened, they marched off – in perfect sync – towards the front of the building.

"You haven't explained what you're doing here, Smallville," she pushed, throwing her shoulder into the door and spilling out onto the sidewalk.

"Neither have you," he growled, keeping pace with her as they crossed the street and ended up at her car.

"Do you need a ride?" she fumed.

"I took my truck," he snapped.

"Good."

"Fine."

"Thanks for the save," she clipped, hotly, yanking open the driver's side door.

"You're welcome. See you back at the Planet," he retorted, stalking off in the opposite direction.

He could hear the squeal of her tires as she pealed out into traffic, fisting his hands at his sides and releasing a pent-up breath as he approached his own car.

Careful to mind his strength as he entered the truck, he realized as soon as he was seated that he was completely, 100% exhausted. His forehead dropped to the steering wheel and his eyes closed wearily as his mind tried to wrap around the frustrating, confusing, exhilarating chaos that had made up his day.

_Lois Lane is a part of your life now_.

The smallest of smiles tugged at his lips.


	5. Give Me Strength

_Sorry this took so long for me to post. Thank you for reading and reviewing, and I promise I will try to be more timely with future chapters. The real world got in the way for a while and I wanted to give this story its due respect. So I had to wait a bit to finish this chapter. The good news is, I already have the major pieces of the next chapter already fleshed out. So hopefully the turnover time for the next chapter will be within the week._

_Enjoy!_

**Chapter 5: Give Me Strength**

Lois hated feeling helpless.

She had been trained, since birth it seemed, to deal with any problem that came her way head-on. No holds barred. If a situation began to spiral out of control, she only had herself to blame for not nipping it in the bud when it first started to evade her grasp.

This time, however, things were different.

Chloe's reaction to her questions regarding Davis Bloom's apparent death was to shut down completely and evade any further interrogation. She was changing subjects so fast that Lois couldn't keep up.

And the helplessness she felt right now, face to face with her tight-lipped younger cousin, was not something Lois was used to dealing with.

"Chlo," she tried again, placing a hand over the paper on the table between them. "I'm just saying…if you need to talk about it, I'm here –"

"And I appreciate that, Lois," Chloe broke in, offering a tight lipped smile from behind her coffee mug. "But I'm fine. Really," she added, just as Lois opened her mouth to protest. "The man I knew and became friends with didn't really exist. And if he was guilty of all the things people are saying he was guilty of – "

At this, her eyes found Lois' and pointedly held them. "Including you…then maybe things are better this way. How could I mourn for a murderer?"

Lois sighed, blowing her bangs out of her face. Davis' picture stared up at them from the front page, directly under the headline that announced his presumed death. Luckily, Tess Mercer had given the story to someone else to cover. For the first time since her career started, Lois was more than happy to take a pass on the front page news. "I know, it's just…I think I know what he meant to you. And I'm sorry if my investigation of him made things weird for you."

"It didn't," Chloe assured her. "If that was what happened, your responsibility to this city was to expose it. I don't have any illusions about the kind of man Davis Bloom was. Now all I want to do is forget that I ever thought of him as a friend."

Lois regarded her cousin carefully. There was more to it…of that she was absolutely certain. But it didn't seem that Chloe was going to clue her in anytime soon. "I get it," she said, settling back in her chair and cradling her coffee. "Consider the subject closed."

"Thank you."

Lois' eyes traveled over the emptiness of the Talon. "So," she began, realizing that if anyone would appreciate her news, it would be Chloe. "Want to hear something completely weird yet wonderful?"

Curiosity lit Chloe's features, erasing, at least for the time being, the emptiness that had taken up residence in her eyes. "With an opening like that…" she said, leaning forward.

Lois could feel the smile pulling at her mouth readily. It seemed that every time she thought about the other night – which, if she was being honest, was about once every fifteen minutes or so - there was no stopping the smile or the surge of confusing emotions that went with it.

"The Red-Blue Blur called me."

Saying the words out loud made the conversation she'd had with him all the more real, and she felt her smile widen. She knew she was behaving like a school-girl, but she didn't care. Not in the slightest.

Chloe, however, didn't seem to be harboring any blushing, girlish fantasies about the mysterious hero. In fact, her brow was scrunched in confusion as she regarded her from across the table.

"What?"

"He called me," Lois repeated, blowing on the steam rising from her mug.

"No, I heard you," Chloe explained, leaning even further over the table. "I guess what I meant to say was…" Her brow creased even deeper. "What?"

Lois laughed. "That was pretty much my reaction, too," she said. "After accusing him of being a weird stalker freak with too much time on his hands."

"What?"

"Chlo, you sound like a parrot."

"I'm sorry," Chloe said, shaking her head as if to clear it. "You're saying that the Red-Blue Blur – a man practically obsessive about his anonymity – just picked up the phone and called you out of the blue? No pun intended…"

Lois' shoulders raised in a quick shrug. "That's exactly what I'm telling you."

From the way her cousin was acting, Lois felt as if she'd just told her that God himself had delivered ten more commandments to the world and used her as tablet-bearer.

Chloe shook her head again, but this time, there was the slightest of smiles pulling at the corners of her mouth. "Well, I'll be."

"What?"

"Nothing," Chloe said quickly, her eyes locking on hers. Folding her arms across her chest, she leaned back in her chair. "So…the famous hero breaks his silence and the first person he talks to is the one and only Lois Lane. Must've heard about your little stint as Stiletto, right? He warned you about playing the hero?"

"That's just it, Chlo," Lois said, feeling the smile pulling at her own mouth again. "That's not why he called."

"So why did he?"

"I've been over and over it a thousand times in my head, and I keep coming up with the same answer."

"Which is?"

Lois met her cousin's alert gaze. "I have absolutely no idea."

"Well, what did he say?"

Lois shrugged helplessly again, which only seemed to cause further amusement for her younger cousin. "For the life of me, I can't even really remember. I was just so…overwhelmed and nervous and I started to ramble and he totally called me on it."

Chloe's smile grew by increments until it was fully displayed across her face. She cradled her cheek in her hand as she leaned on the table towards her. "My, my. Does Lois Lane have a crush?"

Lois rolled her eyes, but quickly averted her gaze before Chloe could read them clearly. "It's not like that, Chlo. I just wanted him to know that I was around if he needed to talk."

"You said that?"

"Well, yeah," Lois said. "It's gotta be lonely being the savior of the free world. No one knowing who you are…who's really responsible for all the saves…sacrifice without the reward."

Chloe's smile turned a bit sad then. "He must've been so grateful to hear that he had a friend he could turn to."

Lois raised her eyes when she heard the melancholy seep into Chloe's tone. "Hey…you alright?"

Chloe snapped out of it immediately, and Lois realized she must've been thinking about Davis again. "Yeah, I'm fine. Although," she added, trying to recall the smile she'd previously worn, "I have to admit, I'm a bit jealous that the world's greatest hero practically has you on speed dial."

Lois huffed nonchalantly, although the words touched something she thought she'd buried after Chloe's disastrous wedding. "Hardly. He was probably just trying to tell me to back off politely, but in true Lois fashion, I talked over him until he forgot what he wanted to say."

Her cousin's head shook in defiance. "Don't sell yourself short, Lo. He didn't have to reach out to you at all – but he did."

Lois found another smile working its way onto her face, but Chloe's next words halted its progress. "So…just out of curiosity…what did Clark have to say when you told him about the one-on-one with the Blur?"

Lois' eyebrows drew together. "Why would I tell Clark?"

"Well, the Blur is front page news," Chloe reasoned. "Don't you guys discuss stories when they come across your desks?"

"Of course. But there's no story here. I told you, the Blur didn't really give me an interview. No personal info or stats or anything," Lois replied, sipping at her coffee in an effort to keep her features neutral. She didn't want to tell Clark about the conversation for so many reasons. The first and foremost being that she knew he'd get all big-brother on her and tell her to be careful with who she trusted.

"Besides," she continued, realizing that if anyone would understand, it would be Chloe. "I know Clark. He'd find a way to make the whole conversation seem completely trivial. He'd explain it away and the fact that Metropolis' very own superhero took time out of his schedule to talk about nothing with a loudmouthed army brat would be reduced to a footnote." She looked down at the table and drew nonsensical patterns on it with her fingernail. "I guess I'm not ready to let Clark take away how…needed…I felt for that one brief moment."

Chloe was staring at her again, in that singular way she had that made Lois feel like she was looking directly into her heart. "Lo…"

Lois brought her eyes up to meet her cousin's gaze.

"Clark needs you, too. He would never intentionally hurt you like that."

Lois chose to let the statement slide past her without pausing to examine it further. The last few months rolled over her in waves and just before the emotions dragged her under, she physically shook herself.

"Now it's my turn to ask for a change of topic," she joked, forcing a smile that barely pulled at her mouth. "Do you think Oliver knows the Blur?"

Chloe's mug paused in its trajectory to her mouth. "What?"

Lois rolled her eyes again. "Think about it, Chlo. Two heroes, one city. They've got to be holed up in some sort of clubhouse, don't they? They probably even have a cute little name for it…and a sign that says 'No Girls Allowed,' no doubt."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Chloe replied, inclining her head to the side and dropping her eyes to the table in front of her.

"Well, they may have one or two girls in the gang…like that Zatanna who gave new meaning to walking a mile in someone else's tight sweater…"

Chloe laughed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Are you going to come right out and ask Oliver? Because I so want to be around if you do."

Lois chewed on her lip thoughtfully. "I don't think so. It might be best to crawl in under the wire, if you know what I mean."

"Not usually, but if it has anything to do with you putting yourself in danger, it's not as funny anymore," Chloe warned, pinning her with her eyes. "Tell me you're not going to do something foolish, Lois."

"My days of looking for trouble are done," Lois assured her. "But that doesn't mean that a little bit of friendly snooping isn't in order. Ollie typically forgets that he has a secret to protect…maybe he'll slip up about the Blur if I'm persistent enough."

Chloe chuckled softly, shaking her head. "You're something else, Lois, you really are."

Lois flashed her cousin a dazzling smile. "I'll take that as a compliment, thank you very much."

* * *

From this distance, the city of Metropolis looked so fragile. Clark knew full well that danger crawled along the streets day and night, and that the citizens that called it home could stand to be nicer to each other.

But standing at Oliver's 75th story window, staring at the city that had somehow become as vital to him as Smallville was, he couldn't help but momentarily succumb to the swift rush of crippling helplessness.

Something he was definitely not used to feeling.

"Are you sure about this Oliver?" he asked finally, his voice sounding deathly quiet as it bounced off the pristine office walls.

Oliver joined him at the window. His hands were shoved in his pockets and his face was a grim mask of resolve. "I went back to where we buried him and I saw that the dirt had been disturbed," he affirmed.

"That doesn't mean he's alive," Clark reasoned. He was grasping for something…anything…that would make the weight in the middle of his gut go away. "Some sick, twisted person could've –"

"Dug him up? No," Oliver said, shaking his head. "It looked like someone dug himself out."

Clark's eyes returned to staring unblinkingly out of the long windows. "That would mean that he's indestructible. I saw him die with my own two eyes, Oliver. That meteor liquid was all over him." The memory caused him to shudder. "I was affected and I was standing five feet away on the other side of glass and bars."

"Yeah, well, the fact still remains that there's no body in the grave." Oliver reasoned. "I had a team dig. No one was home."

"If he's unstoppable…" Clark said, more to himself than anything. His gaze swept once more over the unsuspecting city below. How could he possibly protect them?

"Have you talked to Chloe yet?" Oliver asked. "She and Davis were pretty tight. Maybe she might have an idea about where he would go to lay low for a while."

"Chloe's been a bit distracted lately," Clark said, his focus still on the streets below. "Every time I talk to her, it's like she's somewhere else entirely."

"Maybe because she's hiding something…or someone…from you."

Clark's eyes narrowed and he turned to face Oliver. "There's no way Chloe would keep something like this from me. She knows how dangerous he is. She wouldn't risk people's lives just because once upon a time she thought they were friends."

Oliver nodded, biting his lip. "I hope you're right," he said, not seeming, even for an instant, that he believed that was the case.

"Oliver, I know we've never really seen eye to eye on stuff like this," Clark began, crossing his arms across his chest. "But we're going to need to work together to keep this city safe. We're going to have to trust each other."

"I trust you, Clark," Oliver reasoned, shrugging slightly. "I always have. I just think that there are certain circumstances that require a little more than the standard knuckle slapping we give the threats in this city."

Clark could feel the muscles in his jaw clenching. It always came down to this line between them. "I can't take a human life."

Oliver faced him. "Well then, I guess we're lucky Davis Bloom isn't human anymore."

"Oliver…"

"Look," Oliver interrupted, holding up his hand. "I get it, okay? Protect and serve, at all costs try to minimize casualties. Life is sacred."

"Yeah –"

"But aren't civilians' lives sacred, too?" Oliver argued, not allowing the conversation to get away from him that easily. "Don't they have a right…hell, more of a right to a safe life than the scum that threaten them?"

Clark's hands balled into fists. "Of course they do. I just don't think that jumping the gun here is the way to go about things."

"Then what is?" Oliver demanded. "Wait until he kills someone we care about…Chloe, Jimmy, Lois…before we do anything about him? Because up until then, he's just attacking strangers, right?"

Clark's eyes darkened and he took a step towards Oliver. "That isn't fair."

Oliver squared up and stared directly back at him. "You're right, Clark. It isn't fair."

Images flew through Clark's mind as Oliver maintained the glare piercing straight through him. They weren't new pictures, and had the same effect they always did. Visions of his friends and family lying dead in the streets of Metropolis because he hadn't been strong enough to protect them.

The bile rose in his throat as his body shuddered involuntarily. The only thing different about this time was that the visions now had every reason in the world to become reality.

An indestructible monster.

As wave after wave of panic washed over him, he realized that Oliver was right. If he could keep them safe…

Wouldn't he do everything in his power to do so?

"Okay," he whispered, turning back to the city sprawled out before him. His head dropped forward so his forehead was almost touching the glass. He could feel the coolness against his skin despite the lack of contact and it felt like a reprieve from the heated visions plaguing his mind. He reached for the feeling blindly.

"Okay, what?" Oliver asked.

Clark let out a long breath, using the time to center the swirling thoughts in his mind.

"Okay, let's find Davis Bloom and make sure he doesn't hurt anyone else. Ever again."

The decision weighed on him the entire walk back to the Planet. He felt neither the desire nor the urgency to super-speed back to work. Once he got there, he'd have to sit across from Lois and pretend that everything was perfectly fine.

He'd have to pretend that he had the rest of their lives to verbally spar with her and maybe, someday, find the courage to examine what she meant to him.

Could he kill? Could he look Davis Bloom in the eyes and extinguish the life that had spiraled out of its master's control? And even if he could find the strength to accept his decision, would he even have a shot at succeeding?

His cell phone rang and he fished it out of his pocket. Chloe's name flashed across the screen and Clark's chest constricted tightly. He could count on one hand how many times he'd either lied to or kept something from her - the openness in their friendship a point of pride for him considering that he harbored the biggest secret a person could have.

This, however, was the moment he'd been dreading since making his decision. He wasn't going to tell her of his plans, knowing that if she did in fact know where Davis was, the information would hang over their heads like a destructive elephant in the room. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to understand her reasons for protecting a monster like Davis, and he was more than sure she'd never be able to forgive him for what he was planning to do to that monster.

Besides, he wanted her as far away from what was about to happen as she could physically get herself. Clearing his throat, he pressed the talk button before he could talk himself out of it.

"Hey, Chlo," he said, controlling his voice as best he could. "What's up?"

"So…I hear the Red-Blue Blur is reaching out and touching someone…"

Clark's brow furrowed for a moment before clarity came rushing over him. "Lois told you?"

The quiet laugh on the other end of the line was his answer and he closed his eyes and shook his head. He wasn't going to be able to live this one down. That was, assuming, that he lived at all…

"I mean, I could see if you were giving her the scoop of the century or trying to convince her to hang up her heels as a butt-kicking superhero…but picking up the phone just to tell her she's a good reporter?" The line buzzed with the hint of her barely contained laughter. "Methinks the gentleman protests too much."

"It's not like that," Clark tried to reason, rubbing at his forehead with his free hand. "I just…I wanted to…"

His silence came upon him so quickly that it surprised even him. He had absolutely no idea how to finish that sentence.

"Yes?" Chloe's voice prompted.

But he remained silent, trying to decipher his own reasons. After hanging up with Lois the other night, he'd realized he hadn't mentioned a single thing he'd planned on discussing with her regarding her Stiletto antics, but he'd also found that he didn't care.

She had told him that she'd be there for him whenever he needed to talk, and the warmth that had traveled through him at her words had him grinning like a fool the rest of the evening.

"Clark?" Chloe's voice interrupted. "You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," he mumbled.

Chloe cleared her throat and a seriousness replaced her amusement. "Look, I'm sorry for teasing you. What you do is your business, of course, but I can't help remembering a conversation I had with you about this very subject."

Clark pushed his hair off his forehead. "I'm not slamming your cousin in a door, Chlo. Just the opposite, actually. I'm trying to protect her the best way I know how."

"And how does a random phone call for no good reason factor into that?" she asked gently. "That harmless little conversation meant a lot to her. And why wouldn't it? The city's very own superhero singled her out and made her feel important…telling her that he'd hand-picked her to tell his story when he was ready. What girl would just let something like that slide like it was an everyday occurrence?"

His chest tightened as he remembered the look on Lois' face right before he'd put on the Legion ring. The loneliness he'd seen in her eyes called out to his own and somehow, in that brief moment that was seconds away from never happening at all, he'd felt that as long as Lois Lane was in his life, he'd never know loneliness again. Someone understood him and knew what it was like to search for answers in a world that only seemed to ask impossible questions.

Just like Chloe was doing now.

Because he still didn't have an answer for her. All he knew was that after seeing Lois come crashing through the roof to save his life without regard for her own, the only thing on his mind had been just how special she truly was. And he hadn't been able to stop himself from telling her...even if it was as the Red-Blue Blur.

"I didn't do it to hurt her," he quietly reasoned.

"I know," she admitted softly. "You just have to remember to tread lightly, okay? You can't push her away as Clark Kent and draw her in as the Red-Blue Blur. It isn't fair to her."

She paused, and Clark could almost see the worry lines crease her forehead.

"It's not fair to you, either."

And before he could ask her what she meant by that, she hung up. Clark stared at his phone for a moment before shutting it off and shoving it back into his pocket. At least the conversation had ended before getting around to Davis Bloom. For that, he could be a little grateful.

Which lasted until he got back to the Planet and spotted Lois working furiously at her computer. Taking a deep breath, he forged ahead and threw himself into his chair as quickly as he could so he could use his own computer to shield him until he figured out a way to keep from turning the day into a goodbye scene straight out of a tragically dramatic movie.

"Nice lunch, Smallville?" Lois asked haphazardly, not even looking up from the keys that were receiving the brunt of her focused frenzy.

A million and one things ran through his head, each one of them screaming to be let out and shared with the woman sitting across the desk. As each made their presence known, however, he stomped it down until there was nothing left but empty space.

"Yeah."

She shot him a quick smile. "Good." And back she went to her relentless pounding of the keyboard.

He couldn't help it. His eyes remained fixed on her as he watched her in her element. If anyone had asked him months ago when he'd started working here if he'd miss it…miss her…he'd have told them they were insane. He'd seriously doubted his ability to survive sharing the same breathing space as Lois Lane since they couldn't seem to go more than an hour without pointing out what a nuisance the other was being.

And now it was the thing that he found himself getting out of bed for every morning.

How could he say goodbye to this? To her?

She glanced up then, catching his eye and doing a double take. "What is it, Smallville? Do I have something on my face?" Her hand reached up to swipe at her cheek and the look on her face brought a soft smile to his own.

"No, you're fine," he said, the words he really wanted to say cutting at his throat as he choked them back. He had promised himself that he would never intentionally hurt her, and throwing caution to the wind and exposing everything he was and everything he was about to do just so he could feel some kind of closure was insanely selfish.

Her eyes searched his and for the life of him, he couldn't look away. "You look like someone just told you there's no Santa."

"I'm fine," he lied, shaking his head absently. "Just a little tired."

"Well, next time there's a Kung-Fu marathon on the tube, tivo it like a normal person and get some sleep," she mandated, raising an eyebrow and returning to her work.

As he watched her, he realized he needed to leave. Soon. He wanted to confide in her so badly that his hands were literally shaking on top of his desk, and if he wasn't careful, all of the excuses he'd crafted for himself would go sailing out the window if she asked him if he was okay.

Because he would tell her.

He wanted to hear her voice wash over him and tell him that everything was going to be alright, just like she had so many times before. And even though she'd driven him to the brink of insanity and back, most of the time she'd at least pit-stopped at a place where she knew him better than anyone else.

"Uh, actually Lois…I'm not feeling so great. I don't think lunch agreed with me," he said, quickly grabbing his bag and his suit jacket off the back of his chair. "I'm taking the rest of the day off. Let Tess know for me, would you?"

Lois looked up in surprise and then swiveled away from her computer quickly. "Smallville, what's –"

"Nothing," he interrupted, knowing that if he heard the next words out of her mouth, he'd crack. "I'm just going to go home and get some rest."

"You want me to drive you home or anything?" she asked, reaching into her desk for her own keys. "If you're sick, maybe you shouldn't be behind the wheel…especially since you drive like an old lady as it is."

Clark's smile tugged at his lips despite his need to get out of the Planet as quickly as possible. "I'm okay, but thanks. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Sure thing," she said, eyeing him closely. "Call me if you need anything."

"Thanks."

He had to force himself not to super-speed out of the building, but once outside, he glanced around and as soon as he knew it was clear, he allowed his powers to kick into gear and tried to outrun the sinking sensation that had settled in his gut.

He was getting very good at running away from Lois Lane.

His anxiety followed him all afternoon, and as the sun dipped below the horizon, his nerves were completely frayed. He tried contacting his mother, but she wasn't picking up her phone. The Senate typically stayed late these days, with the economy being in complete shambles. The irony wasn't lost on Clark as he thought of his mother fighting desperately for the common man and a better way of life for them in these trying times when in a matter of days none of it could matter anyway.

If he failed. If he couldn't find a way to defeat the undefeatable.

He thought about calling Chloe despite his initial reservations. At the heart of it all, he knew that Chloe had his back. He could talk to her about this and she'd find a way to be impartial if that's what she knew he needed. Still, he left his phone on the railing of the porch and stared at it as if it would somehow figure this all out for him.

Then, before he was even aware of what he was doing, he was reaching for a second phone…one whose voice modulator sent out a beam of blue light on the numbers he found himself dialing without command.

"Hello?"

Closing his eyes, Clark cursed himself into the lowest rung of hell. But if he was going there, he was going there with her voice in his head.

"Ms. Lane," he acknowledged cautiously, concentrating all of his focus on his hearing when he heard the hitch in her breathing.

"I was wondering when I'd be hearing from you again." The breathlessness of her response settled in his chest and a warmth spread through him that began soothing and fixing and mending.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," he said, knowing full well that Lois was most likely the only one left at the Planet, like she often was by this time of night.

"No…no! Of course not," she assured him, and he could practically see her spinning around in her chair as if to prove to him that she was, in fact, alone. "I was just finishing up at work."

"Busy day?" he asked, sliding down onto the railing and looking out over the fields his father and mother had loved so much. If he concentrated hard enough, he could almost see his father standing in the barn doorway and his mother bounding across the yard to join him with a cup of coffee in each of her hands.

And if he really focused, he could even see Lois' convertible pealing out of the driveway, kicking up dust into his face as she laughed and cranked White Snake loud enough to raise the dead.

Smiling, he realized that she was talking about the news he'd missed out on after he'd left that afternoon and tried to refocus on her words.

"…and the mayor is trying to say that the paperwork is completely legit, but my sources are saying differently."

"I'm sure you'll get to the bottom of it," he said, meaning every word despite his initial lack of attention. "I hear you're very motivated when you're going after something you want."

"It's okay," she said, and he could hear the laughter in her voice. "You can say it. I'm hardheaded."

"I wouldn't call it that."

"I would," she admitted, laughing outright. He smiled at the sound. "And so would a lot of people I know."

"Like who?" he asked, leaning his head against the post behind him. Chloe was going to kill him, but he couldn't bring himself to care. For the first time since finding out about Doomsday and making the decision he'd made, he actually felt a small shred of normalcy. And he was going to hold onto it with everything he had for as long as he could.

"Well…I guess my cousin Chloe tolerates me fairly well. But a guy I dated used to tease me all the time about my inability to agree on a restaurant just on principle," she continued, laughing again. "Easy to see why it didn't work out, isn't it?"

Clark pushed thoughts of Lois and Oliver intimately squabbling over restaurants out of his mind. She didn't belong squabbling with anyone but –

"And someone I work with…I think he'd be able to give you a book of my most hardheaded moments."

He smiled at the thought that she'd saved him for last. "I'm sure your tenacity is one of the things they all admire about you," he said sincerely.

"Yeah, well…enough about me and my pig-headedness. To what do I owe the pleasure?" she asked, and he could pick up on the slight hitch in her voice again. She was nervous, but she was trying to mask it with her typical humor. The thought that he made her nervous coursed through him and made his nerve endings come alive.

It also made him want to share with her all the things Clark Kent couldn't. He found that he could do so as a virtual stranger without putting her in immediate danger.

And he wanted to have the chance to say a proper goodbye, even if he didn't actually say the words.

"I had to make a decision today and I'm having trouble accepting it," he explained.

"A decision about what?"

Clark's breath mingled with the warm breeze. "About whether or not to take a life."

His confession was met with silence, and for a moment, the weight came crashing back down on his shoulders. She didn't approve. She was going to tell him that a true hero didn't –

"I take it you've decided to do it."

His eyes drifted shut. "I don't want to. But if I don't, the entire world is in danger…"

"One life for millions." Lois' voice connected him to reality like a tethered boat in stormy waters. "And you're struggling with it because a life is still a life."

"Exactly," he muttered, sighing.

"Has this person killed before?"

"Several times."

The line went quiet for a while and Clark was just starting to wonder if she'd gotten so freaked out by the weight of their conversation that she'd hung up when he heard her strong voice resume control of the conversation.

"Can I ask you a personal question? Off the record, of course," she added hastily.

"Sure."

"Do you have a family? Friends?"

Clark's eyes closed again. "Yes, I have both."

"Well, here's my take on things…because, you know, you asked and all," she quipped, sending the corners of Clark's mouth up slightly. In the next instant, however, her voice grew resolved and quiet and he allowed the words to wash over him. "Each of his victims…they had people who cared about them, too. They belonged to someone in this world and he took them away from the life that was theirs to live."

Clark's throat began tightening as he realized where Lois was headed.

"I'm sure you've imagined what it would be like to lose someone you care. But here's the thing. There are people out there who don't have to imagine it. They're living it. And you have the power to keep other people from feeling the way they're feeling right now." Her voice grew stronger as she made her point, becoming downright passionate as she concluded. "In my opinion, this monster surrendered his right to your fairness the second he took the first life that wasn't his to take."

And just like that, Clark made peace with his decision. All the times Oliver had tried to explain it to him, all the times Chloe had begged him to consider his alternatives…

They both made sense now. It wasn't about his moral code or his desire to live by a set of hard and fast rules. It wasn't about him at all.

For all his super-powers, it took a mouthy whirlwind of a woman to make him see clearly.

"I told you…just my take. That and fifty cents will buy you a copy of the Planet," she joked lightly into the silence he'd created by being utterly captivated by the woman on the other end of the line.

"No," he rushed out. "I'm sorry…I was just thinking about how right you are." He paused, another smile finding its way to his lips. "And how glad I am that I called you tonight."

Even through an earpiece, he picked up on the acceleration of Lois' heartbeat. It caused his own to try and keep pace. "I'm glad you called tonight, too," she admitted quietly. "I wasn't sure if you would take my offer at face value or not."

"Somehow, I think it would be impossible to take anything you said or did at anything BUT face value, Ms. Lane."

"Lois, please…"

"Lois," he said softly, his eyes drifting shut once more. "I can't thank you enough."

"Are you serious?" she lightly chided. "If you're about to do what it sounds like you're about to do, I should be thanking you - along with the entire free world."

"I'll take care of things," he said, realizing that his voice now held a confidence and assurance that he'd thought abandoned him since finding out about Davis Bloom's immaculate return to the land of the living. "I do, however, have one request."

It was her turn to fill the line with silence. And he knew that she knew what he was going to ask. He took a deep breath and prepared himself for the argument that she would inevitably start.

"You're going to ask me to keep out of things if it comes down to it, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"I can't promise you that I won't do what I have to do to protect the people I care about. You're the superhero, but normal people have every right to fight for their loved ones, too," she reasoned in a strong, sure voice.

"I know," he admitted grudgingly.

She seemed to sense his mood, however, and sighed lightly. "But what I can promise you is that I won't go looking for trouble. I'll keep close to the Planet and listen to the scanner with Clark – that's the guy I work with – and when everything's clear, I'll find you and get that interview. Got it?"

Clark thought of her sitting at their desks, her ears glued to the police scanner and her eyes narrowed at his empty chair, wondering where he could be during one of the most pressing news stories of their generation.

"Got it," he replied softly.

It was time to say goodbye, but he found himself wishing he could stay on the phone with her clear until morning. He knew that the second he hung up he'd be craving the sound of her voice and the realization shook him in ways that he didn't think he had the strength to interpret.

"I, um…" she began, her voice halting and tentative. He could hear her heartbeat again, and his once again kept time with hers. Her soft laughter broke through, although he could hear the nervousness fueling it. "I don't exactly know how to say goodbye," she said.

"I don't, either," he said, his voice sounding small even to his own ears.

"I mean," she continued, "Usually it's just a 'see you later' or 'call you next week' kind of thing. But with you, I have never seen you and I don't have your number."

Clark could hear the beginnings of her rambling streak, and he knew that she was starting to lose the battle over her emotions. Unfortunately, he was right there with her. "Besides…" she continued. "With what you're about to do, who knows when you're going to have the time to check in with me. It's not like you're going to call for a time out during the battle with the beast and give me a ring just to tell me how things are going."

"Lois –"

"You're gonna kick his ass, though. I just know it. That murdering psychopath doesn't stand a chance –"

"Lois –"

"Just promise me you'll be careful, okay? I know that sounds ridiculous…seeing as how you've got these powers that put us normal folk to shame, but still –"

"Lois?"

"Yes?"

He hadn't expected her to stop. When she did, however, and he had her full attention, he found himself at a loss. How could he sum up everything he wanted to say to her in one coherent thought.

"I needed a friend tonight and you came through for me more than I could've ever hoped for," he said finally, finding that once he started talking, the words were actually readily available and willing to be spoken. "I can go into this thing now with a clear head and I seriously have no idea how to thank you for what you've done."

"But I haven't done anything," she protested.

"Yes, you did." Pulling up a picture of her in his mind, he focused on it and pretended he'd had the courage to say these things to her face. "You have no idea what you've done for me."

"Well…you're welcome, I guess," she stammered softly.

"Goodbye, Lois." The thickness in his throat made speech near impossible.

"No – I'll catch you later," she amended. "And…just…be careful, alright? I know that sounds silly considering, but still…"

Clark smiled into the phone. "It doesn't sound silly at all. And I will."

"Good."

"Okay."

Neither hung up, but neither spoke for a few seconds…seconds that Clark filled thinking about how lucky he was that Lois Lane had come barreling into his life five years ago.

"Goodnight, then," she said finally, quietly.

"Goodnight."

He waited until she hung up first, and when the click sounded in his ear, he lowered the phone and snapped it shut almost mechanically.

His mind was miles away, focused on the woman who had given him the strength he had lacked…the strength he had needed to find to be able to face what he had to face.

If he managed to defeat Doomsday, people all over the world would owe it all to Lois Lane.

* * *

Just so you all know, the next chapter will not include the Clark/Doomsday fight. I have chosen to circumvent it since it isn't plot-driven important, and I don't want to step all over Smallville's season ender or the actual canon. Besides this story isn't really about the importance of the fight. It's all about the decisions these two characters make regarding each other. So the aftermath will be more important than the battle.

I own nothing. Except that disclaimer. :D


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